


oh damn, never seen that colour blue

by bananas



Series: ink my whole body [1]
Category: Cricket RPF
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Magical Realism, Boys In Love, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Soulmate AU, Soulmate Tattoos, Soulmate-Identifying Marks, Soulmates, The Ashes 2017-18, a bit of pat being a mother hen at the end, a very sick pat cummins, and a very loving mitch marsh, warner is an idiot
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-04
Updated: 2018-01-04
Packaged: 2019-02-28 09:47:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,290
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13268877
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bananas/pseuds/bananas
Summary: Prompt: A soulmate au where your soulmates current thoughts form a tattoo on your skin. Word length depends on how close your interaction is. Thoughts only appear after your first meeting.orpat is ill and stubborn and mitch loves him anyway





	oh damn, never seen that colour blue

**Author's Note:**

> title from delicate by taylor swift 
> 
> i have uni apps to fill and im doing this instead. prayer circle for eraj and her uni apps @ 4pm gmt everyone is invited
> 
> anywayyy i fell in love with pat and mitch this ashes series and then pat fell ill and this fic was born
> 
> this is another part of the soulmate au series but isnt related to the other parts in any other way so there's no need read them before hand
> 
> happy reading!

Pat’s POV

Pat is ill. Very ill. But he can’t tell anyone. He can’t say anything; he can’t even  _ think _ it, because if he did, then Mitch - wonderful, caring, loving Mitch - would tell Steve and then Steven wouldn’t let him play. 

And Mitch had already noticed something was off twice; once when Pat had stumbled out of bed to the washroom in the middle of the night and stayed in their for the next 20 minutes and the second when Mitch’s tattoo wouldn’t stop tingling because apparently it’s some sort of homing device that tells your significant other when you’re ill. Or lying to them. Oh God, he’s puking again.

Mitch had been so worried when Pat had emerged from the washroom after puking but he couldn’t have known because Pat had locked the washroom door and turned the taps on before falling to the ground and releasing the contents of stomach into toilet, so Pat just lied to his boyfriend. His boyfriend who’s only ever loved him and cared for him and doesn’t deserve to be lied to. But he couldn’t tell him because Mitch wouldn’t get it. With Starc out, it was down to him and Josh to lead the pace attack.

Pat stood up from where he was bent over the toilet gingerly and flushed the toilet. He stared at his pale, drawn face in the washroom mirror at the MCG. He’d rushed off to hide here and puke here as soon as the umpires’ had called the tea interval. Mitch had noticed; he’d called after him but Pat ignored him and the incessant tingling of his tattoo. He knew it was going to be sooner rather than later that Mitch would come looking for him or, worse, take a peek at his tattoo and realize why it had been tingling so much today and then he’d definitely freak out and do something stupid like arrange a search party to find him. He could say goodbye to the rest of the test then.

He was pulled abruptly out of his thoughts when he heard a loud bang and running footsteps coming towards the washroom. He closed his eyes, bracing himself for what he knew was coming.

“Pat! Pat! God damn it, Patrick, where are you?” Pat could hear Mitch sprinting down the corridors, yanking open doors and slamming them shut. He was fast approaching the washroom Pat had been holed up in.

With a deep breath and a hand on the wall to steady himself, Pat unlocked the door and stepped outside. Mitch skidded to a stop right next to him.

“Oh my God, what happened? I checked my tattoo and you were in pain? What happened? Are you okay? Did you fall? Did you slip?”

Pat opened his mouth to answer but another wave of nausea washed over him so he swiveled around as fast as he could and threw himself forwards towards the toilet, to avoid getting puke on his boyfriend or the floor. By the time he finished, he felt a comforting hand on his back, moving up and down soothingly. Pat groaned; his secret was out now. There was no way Mitch was going to keep this from Steve and they both wouldn’t let him play for the rest of the test at least now.

The smell of vomit was starting to nauseate him again so he stood up, with a hand from Mitch. Mitch flushed the toilet while Pat washed his hands, deliberately not meeting his incessant gaze.

Pat was drying his hands when Mitch broke the silence.

“Why didn’t you tell me?”

Pat sighed. “You know why I didn’t.”

“No, I actually don’t,” Mitch said incredulously.

Pat walked out of the washroom slowly, knowing Mitch was going to follow him.

Mitch came up beside him, still looking at him questioningly, waiting for answer.

“Because you’d tell Steve and then you guys wouldn’t let me play,” he said with a resigned sigh.

“Well, obviously!” Mitch said, his face etched with disbelief. “Did you see yourself in there, Pat? You can’t play the match like this. You’ll get even sicker!”

If Pat wasn’t feeling this weak he’d retort back but instead he moved towards Mitch, who instinctively put his arms around him. They continued walking like this as Mitch sighed and kissed his hair.

“Don’t tell him,” Pat pleaded softly, as they approached the team changing area, where the rest of the boys were having their tea.

Mitch sighed again, “Pat, you can’t play like this.”

Pat moved out of his embrace as they reached the door and turned to face Mitch, bringing them both to a stop.

“I have to play.” He didn’t care that he sounded like a sulking child; he had to make Mitch understand.

Mitch shook his head, “No, you don’t. We can get a sub in for you.”

“Yeah but Mitch’s not playing either! Our pace attack will be too weak if I don’t play as well!”

“Gaz will pick up the slack,” Mitch said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

“There isn’t enough turn on this pitch for Gaz and you know it,” Pat said, frustrated by Mitch’s futile arguing.

“Fine, then me and Josh will take care of it,” Mitch said automatically.

Pat huffed impatiently. He was about to answer back when the door in front of them opened, making them both jump.

Gaz stood there, with eyebrows raised. “Are you two going to stand out there arguing for the whole of tea break or are you going to come in any time soon?”

Mitch turned to look back at Pat. He bit his lip, nodded and said, “Okay.”

Pat gave a small sigh of relief and smiled at Gaz as he walked around him into the room, followed by Mitch.

He filled a glass with water at the water cooler as Mitch leaned in to him and whispered, “So what is your plan then? You’re just going to play and let yourself sicker?”

“Mitch, I’ll be fine. I’ll go see them medic and get some medication for this.” He looked straight ahead, not meeting Mitch’s eyes.

Mitch shook his head. “Pat please. Just consider sitting out for a little while. You look really weak. Just give your body some time to recover.”

“That’s what this tea break was for.”

Mitch looked incredulous. “You just spent all of it puking.”

Pat turned to him. “I’m fine, Mitch. Drop it,” he said in a hard voice.

He walked away but he could feel Mitch’s sad, puppy dog eyes digging in the back of his skull.

He may have walked away in a dramatic manner but now, he realized, he had no one else to go to. Gazza and Uzzy had disappeared off somewhere; Steve and Timmy were hunched together in a corner, talking while Josh was probably off spending his tea break with Mitch Starc in the physio’s room. Warner was the only one still in the room. Pat grimaced internally as he approached him.

 

Mitch’s POV

His boyfriend was stubborn, Mitch knew that, but even this was a new height for him. The team needed Pat and Mitch agreed with that, especially with Starc out, but they’d already won the series, so there was no reason for Pat to put himself through so much just to play. He’d considered telling Steve about it, but he knew Pat would hate him and Mitch really didn’t know how he’d survive that.

He sighed for the umpteenth time that afternoon. He couldn’t even be angry at Pat for hiding it from him, no matter how hard he tried. There was just something about seeing  _ pain _ imprinted over and over again on his soulmate tattoo and realizing that his boyfriend was hurt somewhere that drove away every bit of anger he might have felt.

And there he was now, talking to David Warner of all people, just because he didn’t want to talk to Mitch. He was saved at that moment, however, by Steve announcing that the team needed to gather for a talk before they headed back out. Mitch went and stood next to Pat deliberately as Cameron went to call the rest of the guys. Pat ignored him, apparently listening intently to whatever David Warner was saying about how he was sure Tom Curran overstepped when he dismissed Steve and why didn’t the umpires check?

Mitch rolled his eyes and his tattoo tingled sharply as he felt Pat’s annoyance at Warner’s words as well. He smirked to himself, as Tim called for quiet and Steve began talking.

As they headed out to the pitch, Steve gave Pat the ball for the first over after tea. Before, heading out to his fielding position on long-on, Mitch gave Pat’s bum a pat and felt his own tattoo prickle with Pat’s surprise. He jogged away without looking back; knowing Pat’s eyes were on him.

Pat bowls beautifully and he fools everyone with it. No one would suspect he’d puked at least 4 times already today. No one except Mitch, of course. He sees his grimaces and Steve even notices but Pat brushes him off and Mitch frowns. Is it even possible to be  _ this _ stubborn? He resists going to him, though. Pat likes to be left alone when he’s in moods like these. It takes every ounce of his willpower to not rush to him when Pat closes his eyes in obvious discomfort when he runs out to the boundary. But after he takes Stuart Broad’s wicket and he bends over, hands on his knees and clearly nauseous, Mitch sprints across the field to him in record time, followed closely by Steve and Timmy and the rest. Pat comes clean then, finally. Steve recovers from his initial shock and manages to control his emotions with Timmy’s hand on his shoulder, calming him down. Pat goes off and a sub comes on, but he’s done his job. Jimmy Anderson is in now and they’re one away from ending England’s first innings. England bat out the end of the day though and Mitch, after congratulating Alastair, goes off the field, as fast as he can, to find his boyfriend.

He finds him lying on the medic’s table with Mitch Starc next to him, hooked on an IV, but looking alive and better than before. He turns his head towards Mitch when he enters, giving him a sunny smile. Mitch smiles back hesitantly.

“How are you feeling babe?”

“I’m fine now that you’re here,” he smiled even wider as Mitchell Starc gagged next to him.

Mitch couldn’t help but smile back at that as he pulled up a chair and sat down next to the bed.

Steve showed up with Timmy and Uzzy soon after that, with a lecture and a comforting pat on the shoulder. Cameron, who followed them in, made at least one joke about Mitch’s big head which only Pat and Timmy laughed at before the medic said Pat was done. With clear instructions of a goodnight’s rest for Pat (“Looks like you’re flying solo tonight Mitch!” “Shut up Uzzy”) and his medication, they call it a night and head back to the hotel.

Pat isn’t much better overnight. He doesn’t listen though, when Mitch asks him to sit out, but he isn’t surprised. Mitch just runs a hand through his hair and helps him clean up and change out of his puke splattered t-shirt, running his fingers over the tattoo on his right collarbone that corresponds to the one on Mitch’s left collarbone. He places a soft kiss there as Pat sighs and Mitch looks back up as Pat leans forwards and rests his head against Mitch’s.

Pat gets Jimmy first ball the next morning and everyone is relieved, but none more than Mitch, who runs and hugs Pat first, glad that he can get a long break now. They sit in the medic’s room for the rest of the day on Steve’s orders, despite Pat’s protests, where Pat lies down and rests with Mitch by his side. Everyone stops by; Cam comes with funny vines he’s found and more stupid jokes for Pat and Timmy to laugh at, Uzzy brings his mom’s homemade  _ gajar ka halwa _ which he promises is good for nausea and Gaz brings cards and teaches Mitch a new game while they wait. They bat and it rains and then they head back to the hotel together, with Mitch’s arm around Pat and Pat’s head on his shoulder.

Shaun’s wicket falls the next day, right before lunch. As Steve walks in for lunch and joins the team, he seeks out Mitch before eating.

“I need you to do something for me.” Steve was acting very strange, staring straight ahead and not looking at Mitch.

“Yeah?” Mitch asks, confused.

“Bat out the match with me,” he says.

Mitch raises his eyebrows. “Uh, isn’t that the plan already?”

Steve shrugs. “Yeah, but,” he turns to face him. “If you bat this out with me then Pat doesn’t have to come out to bowl again. Do you get what I'm saying?”

“Oh. Ohhh.” Mitch nods, realization dawning on him. “Okay, yeah. I can do that.”

“Mitch, come on, you need to eat before you go out.”

They both turn at the sound of Pat’s voice.

Mitch smiles at him and Pat immediately frowns.

“Wait, why are you smiling like that? What have you both plotted now?”

“Nothing,” says Mitch, still smiling.

Pat continues frowning but Mitch grabs his hand, enjoying the pleasant tingle of his tattoo as he does, and leads him to the lunch table so Pat can start telling him what and how much he should eat before he goes to bat.

**Author's Note:**

> for anyone wondering, the homemade _gajar ka halwa_ that uzzy gets is a pakistani sweet dish made with carrots. im pretty sure its good for digestion and nausea but i may be wrong. also its like really good
> 
> thanks for reading!


End file.
